Gaming Life in the U.K.

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Nintendo preps for Wii launch while Britons devour the undead.

By Alex Wollenschlaeger

The disappointment following Sony's delay of the European launch of the PlayStation 3 is still fresh, and even now people are coming up to me, asking me what the hell happened, and why would Sony drop them like this? I don't know what to say. But I do make a point of reminding them that Sony's not the only one with a new console coming out.

Nintendo will give us full launch details on Friday

On Friday, Nintendo is set to release the final launch details for the Wii, but trade paper MCV said it had the inside track late last week and predicted that Nintendo would drop its new system for a measly £150. Perhaps better is the speculation that Nintendo would not have anything like the stock issues its rivals have seen and will see, and supply should be plentiful in the all-important run up to Christmas. Nintendo was quick to respond. UK boss David Yarnton said that while the report definitely wasn't right, it wasn't far off either. We'll find out for sure at the end of the week, when Nintendo hold its worldwide Wii release meetings.

To get Nintendo fans even more riled up - if that's possible - High Street retailer Game is flying over Charles Martinet, the voice of Mario, who will sign postcards and hang out with the Mario Corps while Nintendo doles out launch information for the Wii. Martinet will be at the Game on Oxford Street in London from 12-4pm on Friday, 15 September. There'll be some freebies on offer too, including copies of New Super Mario Bros for the first 18 people in line (though you'd assume anyone hardcore enough to stand in line would have it already...) and T-shirts for the next 10.

Mario, or at least his voice, will be in London on Friday too

So much for the future - what about the present? I mentioned last week that although the Xbox 360 isn't doing as well in Europe as it is in the US, it's certainly not the UK that's responsible for that. Microsoft says the console is on track to crack a million sales well before Christmas. And the Xbox 360 horde showed their might this week, giving the top of the sales chart (seen later this issue) a distinctly green appearance. Three of the top 5 games are exclusive to Microsoft's next-generation console, including this week's chart topper, Dead Rising. It's much too early to tell whether the game will have the same sort of success it's seen in the US, but there's palpable excitement for Capcom's zombies-in-a-mall smash-fest.

Dead Rising is getting a lot of retail attention

Weekly sales are up in the UK, by about 10 percent in pound terms. Interestingly, the unit numbers haven't changed all that much - another sign that people are getting out there and buying new games now that publishers have finally started putting them out again. Publishers still aren't happy about retailers discounting their games, but now that new ones are coming out again, people will be more willing to part with bigger wads of cash per game.

One of the guaranteed hits this autumn is Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer 6. Microsoft may be talking up the perfunctory exclusive deal it has on the next-gen version of the game this year, but it's the PlayStation 2 version that's going to be bringing in the money. As part of its master plan to squeeze as much out of its already-there audience as possible, Konami held an open demo of the new PlayStation 2 version at the Virgin Megastore on Oxford Street in London on Sunday. When I popped in, there were nearly 100 people crowded in the cordoned-off demo area, and that was before noon.

Pro Evo fans gather for a Sunday morning session

Speaking of coming attractions, if you're a fan of video game music, you'll want to make sure to keep two dates open: 28 October and 25 November. On both of these dates you'll be able to take in live performances of some of your favourite tunes. First up, on 28 October, is a show by Sega stalwart Richard Jacques. Jacques, whose work has appeared in OutRun, Sonic, Samba De Amigo and a lot more, will be at GameCity 2006 in Nottingham. If you manage to survive the raging blue masses there, and you're still in the mood for a few game tunes, you can head over to London's Hammersmith Apollo on 25 November for Video Games Live, where you'll be able to savour lavish portions of Halo, Zelda, and Metal Gear. It's not often that the UK gets so much of the aural side of games, so expect both events to be well attended.